


Arachnophobia

by not_here_leave_a_message



Category: Atypical (TV 2017)
Genre: Also I looked it up spiders are considered animals, Am I tagging right?, Don't worry they're in Connecticut so they're not big spiders., F/F, First Kiss, Fluff, In case you were curious., Like everyone else I sort of just fell into the Atypical fandom whoops, My First AO3 Post, One Shot, There's no danger., This is relevant if you read the fic haha...
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-03
Updated: 2018-10-03
Packaged: 2019-07-24 17:17:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16179620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/not_here_leave_a_message/pseuds/not_here_leave_a_message
Summary: Izzie's not afraid of spiders.  So really, in a way, she's not afraid of anything.





	Arachnophobia

**Author's Note:**

> Izzie's not afraid of spiders. She isn't afraid of a whole lot because of it. (She just strikes me as the type to secretly not be afraid of spiders, fight me).
> 
> (True to the title, there is a house spider and other types of spider are mentioned in it. Just a heads up!)

Izzie was not afraid of spiders.

It was a piece of information she didn’t share with people because it often didn’t come up.  Nate didn’t know, even though he’d been her boyfriend for a while.  None of her friends at Clayton knew and her mom didn’t and her siblings knew she got rid of spiders for them, but she didn’t think they’d clued into the fact that she wasn’t afraid of them anymore. 

In truth, she sort of had come to like them.  Not enough to ever keep one as a pet, but enough that they didn’t really bother her.   The one that scuttled out from under Casey’s bed while they worked through their summer assignments did startle her, but it was nothing compared to Newton’s reaction. 

The girl positively shrieked, which startled Izzie more than the spider’s sudden appearance.  Newton scrambled off of the floor where they’d been sitting at the end of her bed.  She ended up on said bed, as though the spider were perhaps ten times larger than it actually was, and Izzie only looked at her incredulously before bursting out laughing. 

“Damn Newton, didn’t know you were a screamer!” she teased, chuckling even more at her own joke.  Calmly, so as to not scare the little spider that had stopped scuttling after Newton’s freak out, Izzie ripped a piece of paper out of her notebook, folding it carefully so that it had a bit more of a stiff quality to it, and laid it down in front of the spider.  It didn’t look like a jumper, thankfully, and so she gently nudged it with the eraser end of her pencil. 

The scared little thing bolted forward but stopped on the page. 

“I…I just, I was just-”

Izzie laughed again at the stuttering.  God, Newton was cute.  She wasn’t looking at her, instead focusing on the little arachnid, but she didn’t have to see Newton to know she was cute. 

“Scared, yeah, I got that.  It’s normal.” Izzie turned serious, “Grab that glass on your nightstand for me, Newton?” Izzie said, holding out her hand but still not taking her eyes off of her future captive.  Spiders were tricky.  Sometimes she felt like they knew when people stopped looking at them, and they took full advantage of that to disappear. 

While she personally wouldn’t mind, she didn’t want to think about a possible future squishing for the little guy. 

Seeing no immediate movement out of the corner of her eye from the other party in the room, Izzie made a noise, flexing the fingers of her extended hand.

“Uh, now, Newton!” Izzie glanced at her very quickly, sending the startled-looking girl a smirk. 

“Oh, uh, right,” a moment later, the coolness of the glass settled on Izzie’s palm, and she wasted no time in putting it over the spider, effectively trapping the little thing. 

It went absolutely bonkers, running around the rim of the glass several times before stopping. 

God, they were fast little buggers. 

She examined it closely through the glass.  It was slightly magnified but the glass had bends and folds in it that made any markings harder to discern, so Izzie gave up.

“C’mon, let’s get you out of here,” she said to the spider instead, carefully picking up her make-shift trap and standing. 

She finally looked over at Casey, who was staring at her with an odd mix of admiration and confusion on her features. 

Izzie shrugged, “When you’re the oldest and you take care of your younger siblings, you get used to spider duty,” she offered in way of explanation.  When Newton still didn’t react, she sheepishly held up their unwelcomed guest, “I’m just gonna go put him outside.  Be right back,”

She shot Casey a smile before proceeding out the door and down the stairs, padding lightly.  When she hit the ground floor landing, she took a moment to take another look at her captive. 

It was small, but not too small.  Maybe a juvenile?  She didn’t know, she didn’t know enough about spiders or mating seasons or growth rates to call something like that.  It wasn’t a jumper though, thank goodness.  She might not have been afraid of spiders any more, but jumping spiders liked to jump in unpredictable directions and at unpredictable times.  It didn’t bother her but she could only imagine Newton’s reaction!

The thought made her chuckle quietly to herself. 

She got it, she did.  She hadn’t always liked spiders.  But, like she’d told Newton, of all of the new responsibilities that came from stepping up and playing parent and sibling, spider duty had been perhaps one of the most exasperating.  She started out shrieking almost as much as Newton had!  She’d had to get over it fast, though.  Not that there were a lot of spiders in her house, but children had the most unusual ability to find just about any spider in existence, and they would use its presence as an excuse to not do _anything_ within a hundred feet of it. 

She was eternally grateful that she’d been able to steer the children away from a full-grown female wolf spider earlier that year, though.  One spider was one thing, but a female wolf spider in early June was quite another.  It would have been a nightmare to try and control the tears from her younger siblings. 

Once she’d shooed them to the other side of the yard though, she couldn’t help catching a quick peak.  It was...kind of cool, actually?  Wolf spiders were the only kind of spider to carry their live young on their backs and while she could understand how that would be nightmare fuel for a lot of people, it wasn’t for her. 

Izzie tilted the glass and paper slightly, trying to get a better look.  The legs were thin but not hairy, and the spider looked black.  It was pretty small, though she could make out two parts to the body. 

Some kind of house spider, at any rate.  Not dangerous: there weren’t really dangerous spiders in Connecticut, thankfully. 

“What is that?” Sam’s voice broke her out of her musing. 

She lowered the trap from her gaze and shifted her feet to look at Sam.  She knew he liked animals, but she wasn’t sure how big a fan he would be of bugs or insects. 

“Oh, it’s just a spider.” She said, keeping her tone neutral.  If Sam wasn’t a big fan of spiders, maybe he’d react like her younger brother: if she didn’t freak out, he didn’t see a reason to, either.  He’d actually really taken to animals and made her read animal books to him before bed, which she didn’t mind.  She liked reading about them.

“Oh.” Sam said, “I don’t like spiders.  Too many legs.”

Izzie nodded.  “A lot of people don’t like spiders.”

“Do you?” Sam asked. 

Izzie couldn’t help but smile.  To the point, as always.  She knew from Newton’s stories that Sam’s bluntness could often be abrasive, but thus far, Izzie had mostly found his honesty and lack of pretense refreshing. 

She nodded in the affirmative.  “I do actually, yeah.”

“That’s weird.” 

And, well…he wasn’t wrong.  It was weird.  Which was why she didn’t usually tell people.  Feeling like the odd one out at school was already hard enough, she didn’t need to add to her sense of alienation by confessing to people that she actually thought spiders were kinda cool. 

“Though perhaps good.  You like animals.” He continued. 

Izzie nodded.  “I do.  How’d you know?”

“You knew Edison was a tortoise, and you knew olfactory senses were strongest-”

She opened her mouth to remind Sam that he’d been the one who knew that, actually.  She just knew that she found certain smells comforting, so maybe he would, too.  But he continued on, not noticing her facial cues. 

“-which is true of most species of animal though of course, not all of them.  Are spiders your favorite animal?” He pressed. 

Taken slightly aback by the rapid change of thought, Izzie blinked but answered, without thinking, “Yeah, I guess?”

Sam nodded.  “That’s interesting.  I said I didn’t like them because they have too many legs, but I do like that they eat insects, because I find insects to be even more of a problem, so I do appreciate their efforts.  And, of course, without spiders there would be a noticeable and critical gap in the predator-prey cycle of many species of bird.” He snorted, then, “Not Antarctic penguins, of course!  There are no spiders that could endure the harsh landscape of Antarctica so penguins have adapted to hunt different prey.”

Izzie smiled, “Very smart of them,”

“They didn’t have a choice,” Sam said, matter-of-fact.  “Do you have a favorite spider?”

“I do, I think,” she said, again startled by the truth and speed with which she answered. 

Sam stared at her, waiting, so she quickly hastened out, “Huntsman spiders.”

Which was…true enough, actually.  Huntsmans were the fastest species of spider, reaching speeds of up to a meter a second.  She liked thinking about them when she was running, sometimes.  Giant huntsmans were still kind of terrifying even to her, but little ones, like the Lichen…they were lovers, not fighters.  Unappreciated and misunderstood, Izzie sort of identified with them, on some level.  Which was probably crazy but, well.  Add it to the list.

Sam made a face, “I’m not sure I know much about them.  I won’t look anything up, though.  Too many legs,” his expression turned even sourer and he shook his head and left, leaving Izzie to look after him with a small smile on her face.

She liked Sam.  She meant it when she’d told Newton he was cool. 

He was actually the first person she’d ever told, about her little thing for spiders. 

Huh.

She snapped from her thoughts, suddenly feeling the weight of the glass pressed into her palm. 

“Sorry about that,” she murmured absently to her captive, “Let’s get you outside.”

The warm but muggy summer air hit her as she walked onto the porch, down the steps and to the lawn, where she lifted the glass and let the spider scurry away. 

She headed back inside and put the glass in the sink, figuring that Newton wouldn’t want it back until it was washed. 

She threw the paper away and started heading back up the stairs, still thinking to herself. 

She supposed that, really, once she’s conquered her fear of spiders…it was weird.  Other things suddenly didn’t seem so scary, either. 

Spiders had been something that she’d learned to fear for most of her life.  She’d always been told how they were gross and creepy and scary and she bought it, until she dealt with them on a semi-regular basis.  And she realized…they were actually really small.  Like…a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of her size.  And as she’d watched them, she’d realized that most were just terrified, scurrying around to avoid the terrifying fate of whatever she had in store for them. 

For a time, it had been killing them.  Which had been fine for the small ones they found, but when they started running into larger spiders in the warmer months, well…it wasn’t exactly fun to clean spider guts off of tile or a wall or god forbid, the carpet. 

So she’d switched to trapping, which lead to a sort of neutralization of the threat: it couldn’t hurt her from under the glass. 

It couldn’t really hurt her at all. 

And once she realized that, she started to wonder how many other of her learned fears were overblown…were taking small things and making them infinitely worse. 

Nate had called her bold, once.  She hadn’t really understood at the time, but she understood now. 

Because looking back, she’d done a lot of things that she wondered if she would have ever done, had she not conquered that small fear of spiders.  She’d dumped Nate.  She’d realized she was into her best friend.  She proceeded to not have a freak out about it, but instead to be relieved, because at least she had an answer for her strong and staggering jealousy. 

She then told her friend she loved her and made up a forehead promise to get closer to her.  To apologize to her.  To see if there was any hope for a them, in the future. 

It was perhaps the boldest thing she’d ever done, besides holding Casey’s hand in the car not long after. 

Even thinking of it now, padding her way up the stairs, made her dizzy with nervousness and surprise at her own lack of fear in such daunting circumstances. 

She just…she didn’t care.  Compared to spider duty, compared to the feeling of loneliness she’d been bearing on her shoulders…compared to all of her problems, worry for her siblings, her mother’s revolving door of deadbeat boyfriends: out of all of her fears…being in love wasn’t one of them.  Finding someone who understood her, who loved her for who she was, regardless of if they would become lovers or stayed friends?  What was so scary about that? 

She’d figure it out.  She’d conquered spiders: after that, how hard could a simple thing like love be? 

Izzie walked back into Casey’s room to find Newton looking contemplative, her mouth hanging slightly open and her brow furrowed, still looking very much torn between being impressed and being confused. 

She looked more relaxed, at least. 

Izzie shot her a smile, “Taken care of!” she announced happily, before taking her seat again at the foot of the bed, though facing Casey instead of the door, as she had been before their little interruption.  She flipped her notebook back to the page she’d been on and tried to find where she’d been in her book before Newton’d had her little freak out. 

She felt eyes on her and could only pretend to not notice for a few seconds. 

She looked up, exasperated, to find Newton staring at her, somewhat incredulously. 

“Newton, what?” she asked, a hint of humor in her voice. 

Newton blinked, her mouth morphing into a smile of disbelief. 

“What?!  What, what?” she asked, sitting up suddenly from where she’d been leaning back on her elbows.  “Um Iz, when were you going to tell me that you were Spider-Gwen??”

Izzie rolled her eyes, feeling a slight blush creeping up her cheeks at the tease. 

If she was honest, she hadn’t planned on telling Casey for a while that she wasn’t afraid of spiders.  Not necessarily because she thought that Newton would care…in fact, she knew that Newton would tease her mercilessly for it.  And she found she actually didn’t mind the thought of that at all.  With others, she knew it would annoy her almost immediately.  There was just something different about Newton’s teasing, Newton’s attention, that always warmed Izzie to the core. 

Which made the revelation about her feelings, truly, all the more obvious. 

It was actually because she liked Casey that she was hesitant to come out with the whole “spiders are actually kind of cute!” thing. 

That was more a third date type of topic, right? 

“Oh, please,” she tried to play off just how much Casey’s tease was so pleasing to her.  “It wasn’t even a big spider!  Trust me,” she shot Newton a warning glance, “I’ve seen much larger, and much faster.  I’d even say that might have been a baby.”

Casey didn’t say anything, just raised her eyebrows in a way so as to say “Nerd” and Izzie humphed. 

“You get used to them when you’re the only one getting rid of them,” she said as justification, which was true.  It also sent a sympathetic look across Casey’s features, which Izzie hadn’t been looking for but appreciated nonetheless.  She hadn’t meant that as a stab at her own absent father, but well…it was because of her circumstances that she was as she was. 

“So like, you’re really not afraid of spiders?  Like…at all?” Casey asked, pushing herself forward until she was sliding off the bed, her back against the mattress as she finally settled on the floor.  Izzie didn’t miss how she cautiously glanced around, as though the spider had siblings out for revenge. 

Izzie shrugged, “I used to be but, like I said.  Three siblings.  Deadbeat mom.  You eventually sort of just get used to them.”

Casey snorted, “I doubt that.”

“I’ve living proof, Newton,” she said simply, leaning back and opening her arms, as though to prove her point. 

Casey chuckled.  “Yeah but you’re different.  You’re special.” She said, so sincere and so quiet that Izzie felt her entire stomach do a somersault and she swallowed audibly. 

She foolishly kind of hoped that Casey hadn’t heard.  Because, yeah, she wasn’t afraid of her feelings, or even of possible rejection.  But she was nervous anyway: people were like that around people they liked. 

The tension was broken though, by Newton grabbing her stuff and sending a goofy smile at Izzie before poking her book and trying to find the spot she’d been at before going ape shit over a tiny spider. 

They studied like that, in (mostly) comfortable silence, when suddenly Newton looked up and said, out of nowhere, “You know that you getting rid of spiders makes you like, the perfect woman, right?”

Izzie dropped her gaze almost immediately after hearing that, unable to hide the blush she could feel furiously taking over her entire face, starting at her cheeks and spreading to her nose and all the way to her ears.  She bit her lip and couldn’t stop the huge smile that broke out across her face, which she tried to also hide by pointedly staring at the page in front of her as though it held all of the answers to all of the questions in the entire universe. 

“Shut up, Newton,” she said to the book, still refusing to look up, and it was Casey’s turn to laugh loudly. 

The rest of their study session was slow-going.  They had another month before school started so it wasn’t like they were in a hurry to get their summer assignments done.  Really, the study sessions were just an excuse to hang out.  They’d had a period where they hadn’t seen each other much: Casey had broken up with Evan and asked for space, which Izzie had been happy to provide, though she made sure that Newton knew she was there for her, when and if she wanted to talk about it. 

That had been after finals.  So it’d been a month and change since then, which was fine.  Izzie was willing to wait however long, until Casey figured out whatever was going on inside of that head of hers.

Her only worry was that she’d be shut out, which she didn’t want.  She’d prefer to know every agonizing detail, than to not.  She’d rather be there when or if Newton decided she didn’t want to pursue a relationship, even though Izzie doubted that would be how it ended.  She wasn’t crazy.  She knew she wasn’t the only one who wanted them.  She knew that she’d not been the only one going in for a kiss during their forehead promise. 

But she wasn’t going to push.  After all, not everyone had been forced to face their fears the way she had.  These feelings could be scary. 

She just had to remind herself of that. 

So she was content being friends until explicitly told otherwise.  And she had decided, she did want it to be explicit.  She wanted to hear it from Casey.  She’d been the one to make the first moves.  To show her interest. 

For once, maybe she didn’t want to be the only brave one. 

She wasn’t sure, but she thought maybe Casey got that. 

When they decided they were done and Izzie realized she had to get back to help her grandmother make dinner and then get the kids home to go to bed, Casey walked her down to the porch, which was…pretty normal, actually.  It was really sweet. 

“Well, send me a text when you’re home and stuff,” Casey said, standing in the doorway and smiling almost awkwardly at Izzie.

Izzie sent her a radiant smile back, “Oh, you know I will!”

“Tell Miles not to overdo it on the pepper again tonight,” she teased.  Miles, Izzie’s younger brother, liked to help with dinner and had a tendency to always put in far too many spices.  Izzie was actually a bit touched that Casey even remembered that story, and she felt that warmth again in her chest as she watched Casey, leaning on the door frame and shoving her hands in her hoodie pockets. 

And god, she was just so goddamned cute like that??  All long limbs and shy smile and a style that was super relaxed but somehow still attractive. 

Izzie rolled her eyes, “I’ll tell him, but who knows if he’ll listen to me,” she giggled and Casey did the same. 

They settled into a comfortable silence, observing each other, and Izzie felt herself biting her lip as she looked her best friend up from toe to head.  Fuzzy socks, bare and long legs, black running shorts that could have been men’s but could have also just been long women’s, and a red basketball sweatshirt for a team that Izzie had never heard of. 

The words slipped out without Izzie’s permission.  “I like you.”

Casey looked taken aback, but not in a bad way. 

Izzie laughed to herself, self-depreciative.  Well, she hadn’t meant to say that, but it was true.  “I know you know that, but just…I hadn’t said it out loud so.  Now you know.  In like.  Actual words and stuff.”

Good god, she could have slapped herself comically on the forehead if it weren’t for Newton’s sincere and understanding laugh.  “Yeah I uh…I kinda like you too, Iz.” Casey said, looking shy about saying those words out loud.  But she looked up a moment later and sent Izzie a huge grin that had her chest aching. 

“God, I want to kiss you,” Again, unbidden and again, not wrong.  Izzie didn’t even try to hide that time.  It was true. 

She even added a small shrug to Casey’s startled expression. 

Still, she imagined her expression mirrored Casey’s when Newton went, “So why don’t you?”

It wasn’t quite an invitation, but it would be a lie to say that Izzie wasn’t tempted, in that moment, to bound forward and pull Newton close and taste those lips and seeing if they were as soft as the heart of the person they belonged to. 

She resisted the temptation, though, instead scanning over Newton again.  She seemed nervous that she’d said that and that Izzie hadn’t gone for it, so she sent her a reassuring smile. 

“You know I want to, Newton.  But I don’t overstep clear boundaries.” Her gaze softened even more as she took in the surprised expression Newton sent her, “It’s cool.  But like, just know: if you ever decide you want to kiss me back, I’m up for it.”

Casey rolled her eyes at that but sent her a small, grateful smile.  She wasn’t quite ready yet.  That much was obvious.  And that was okay.  She knew that breaking up with Evan had been hard for Casey to do.  That she still felt conflicted.  That she still was figuring things out. 

 The important thing was that she knew that Izzie understood: that they’d left everything clear and out in the open. 

“Later, Newton,” she smiled warmly at her and waved before walking down the porch and to her car. 

Casey waved at her from the doorway as Izzie drove off.

\---

Casey was afraid of spiders.  Not like, to the level of full-blown arachnophobia, but like…enough.  She found them creepy, definitely.  Their legs were weird and her and Sam agreed that they definitely had too many.  They were small but they were fast and though she didn’t kill them when she saw them, she didn’t exactly like seeing them, and she liked them even less when they came out of nowhere and scared the shit out of her.

She didn’t like surprises, either.  She hadn’t loved her surprise party, she didn’t like the surprise feelings for her best friend, she didn’t like the surprise kiss from her best friend’s boyfriend, she didn’t like the surprise betrayal from her best friend and the surprise fight that lasted way too long. 

But, hell.  If Sam could face his fears and go to school without her, talk in front of a crowd, and head off to college, then could face her fears, too. 

Not her fear of spiders, of course.  That would be ridiculous, she wasn’t as crazy as Izzie, thanks.  Besides, if everything worked out well, she wouldn’t have to worry about it because Izzie would deal with them. 

Unless Izzie wanted one as a pet, a thought that gave her pause as she closed the trunk of her car.  They’d just finished seeing a movie and Izzie’d made a beeline to the bathrooms.  Casey said she’d meet Izzie at the car, using the excuse of getting the aircon going even though it really wasn’t needed.  The night was pretty mild, and Izzie’d teased her about it as she pushed the lady’s room door open, but well…Izzie didn’t know it yet, but this was going to be a special night.  Not just another one at the movies. 

Casey took in a shaky breath.  They would have to talk about the possibility of a pet spider.  Casey could see herself getting used to it.  She wouldn’t like it, per se, and they’d have to have strict rules about _the spider never leaves it’s tank, ever_ , but…maybe they could compromise?

Casey shook her head.  She was getting ahead of herself. 

She tightened her grip on Izzie’s surprise gift. 

She knew it’d been kind of…cruel, to keep Izzie waiting almost the entire summer.  School was starting up in a week and a half.  But at the same time…it felt right, now.  It felt perfect, and the warm summer night air seemed to agree. 

That day that she found out Izzie wasn’t afraid of spiders, Izzie had (correctly) guessed that she wasn’t quite…ready, for a them.  For a kiss between them.  In some ways, Casey had been ready ever since their forehead promise.  And in many other ways, she’d been plagued with doubts that were only soothed with Izzie’s presence.  She still felt lingering guilt and pain over what she almost did to Evan, how she almost did exactly what she hated her mom for doing.  It…it had been a lot for her to digest and so really, she hadn’t been ready.  And Izzie had understood that some things were scarier for Casey than for her, and she’d accepted that. 

And she’d be lying, if she said that she was completely over her nerves over the whole thing.  But what was different was that her desire to be with Izzie overwhelmed her nerves, her fears.  The more she saw Izzie, the less noise she had in her head, the less doubt or questioning, the less…everything.

Izzie had always had that effect on her.  Had always challenged her, provoked her, pushed her.  Made her braver, faster.  Bolder. 

She’d been ready for a while, but she’d decided to do a little something extra.

The surprise first date had gone well, in that Izzie hadn’t clued into the fact that it was their semi-official first date.  They’d held hands through most of the movie, Izzie’s thumb tracing invisible patterns in Casey’s skin.  It wasn’t the first time that summer they’d seen a movie together, or held hands, or had an intimate moment without even looking at each other, but it was the first time that their night wasn’t going to end the usual way. 

The thought had Casey squeezing Izzie’s gift even tighter and her heart thudding even louder. 

Tonight was the night that she really wanted to show Izzie that she wasn’t afraid of anything, anymore. 

Well, maybe still spiders.

But of them: of Izzie and Casey, Casey and Izzie?

Nope. 

With some help from Sam (and Google) and several shopping trips later, Casey was ready.  She’d set the whole thing up, like them casually going to the movies, like any other time they had.  A quick text, Izzie accepting, making the plan and seeing the movie.

The only difference was that Casey had to remember to put the gift in her trunk, and try to find the perfect opportunity to give it to her. 

This one had presented itself quite nicely.  All she had to do now was wait for Izzie to leave the theater. 

She didn’t have long to wait: Izzie rounded the corner from the exit right as Casey decided to stuff the gift behind her back.  She tried to look innocent but she knew she was caught because Izzie’s musical laugh rang out in the mostly empty parking lot. 

“Newton!  What are you hiding?  Another love note?” she smirked, sticking her tongue out. 

“Ha,” Casey feigned a laugh, “Close!” she whipped out the gift, grinning hugely at the array of emotions that crossed Izzie’s face as she took it in. 

“Izzie, meet…Iz!” Casey said proudly, holding out the stuffed spider.  Its fur was super soft and it was banded black and orange.  It was mercifully not anatomically correct, so it had a stitched-on smile and (thankfully only two) huge green pebble eyes.  The legs flopped uselessly at its sides, hanging over the edges of Casey’s palms.  It was downright adorable.  If all spiders looked like that, maybe Casey could stand them. 

Confusion, elation, and finally warmth settled on Izzie’s features as she plucked the stuffed spider from Casey’s hands.  “Oh my god Newton, what is this?!”

“Tiger huntsman?” she tried, which had Izzie snapping her gaze up from the gift to Casey. 

“Sam kind of spilled the beans that huntsmans are your favorite?  Which, gross Iz, really?!” she teased, poking Izzie on the side.  Izzie swatted her arm. 

“The guy at the store said the tiger ones were the prettiest ones, so…the prettiest spider for the prettiest weirdo I know,” she grinned like a damn fool, and she knew it, but she didn’t care. 

Izzie rolled her eyes.  “Gee, thanks,” she chirped, sticking out her tongue again.  She looked down at the stuffed spider, nestling it to her chest, “You named it after me?”

Casey nodded, and Izzie chuckled to herself, biting her lip and looking back down at her gift, safely tucked in her arms in a semi-hug. 

And she just looked so damn cute.  Her hair was in loose waves, as was usual, framing her adorable face and her beautiful cheekbones were highlighted with a summer’s smattering of extra freckles.  She’d not put on much make-up, maybe a bit of mascara, which Casey firmly believed that she didn’t actually need.  She’d gone for a casual look, a simple v-neck tee and jean shorts and flip flops.  So simple, yet so perfect.  Casey was all too aware. 

“I want to kiss you, you know?” Casey heard herself say, a little startled by how strong but soft the words were.  God, just like her feelings.

She refrained from leaning forward and head-desking on the car’s trunk at such a sappy thought. 

Izzie looked up from her spider, raising her eyebrows slightly in surprise. 

She recovered quickly though, a challenging smirk sliding across her lips.  “So kiss me then, Newton.”

A dare. 

But also, an invitation, Izzie’s eyes alight with anticipation and warmth. 

So she did it.  She leaned forward, closing the distance between them easily, and capturing Izzie’s lips with her own. 

And god, so Casey was afraid of spiders, okay?

She was afraid of spiders and of failing classes and of never mending things fully with Evan, and of the future and of a lot of other things she couldn’t think of at the moment.

But she wasn’t afraid of her feelings for Izzie.  Of kissing Izzie. 

Not anymore. 

And that was a damn good start. 

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact, in the original draft of this fic I had Izzie do a physics assignment that involved calculating how fast a huntsman could run if it was the size of Usain Bolt. 
> 
> I went over this story so many times so hopefully I got all the errors. That said, it is unbeta-ed so *shrug*. Also, I have a drawing of the stuffed spider so let me know if that's of any interest to anyone. Otherwise, hope you liked the fic! :) 
> 
> Lastly:
> 
> I'm in the process of translating this fic into Spanish, so if you speak Spanish and you'd like to help me edit it, please send me a message! (This also works if you know someone who speaks Spanish who might be interested).
> 
> Traduzco este ensayo al español, así que si tu hablas español y te interesaría editarlo, mandame un mensaje porfis!


End file.
